International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship

Metacognitive Factors that Impact Student Nurse Use of Point of Care Technology in Clinical Settings

RuthAnne Kuiper — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:58:46 PST

The utility of personal digital assistants (PDA) as a point of care resource in health care practice and education presents new challenges for nursing faculty. While there is a plethora of PDA resources available, little is known about the variables that effect student learning and technology adoption. In this study nursing students used PDA software programs which included a drug guide, medical dictionary, laboratory manual and nursing diagnosis manual during acute care clinical experiences. Analysis of student journals comparative reflective statements about the PDA as an adjunct to other available resources in clinical practice are presented. The benefits of having a PDA included readily available data, validation of thinking processes, and facilitation of care plan re-evaluation. Students reported increased frequency of use and independence. Significant correlations between user perceptions and computer self-efficacy suggested greater confidence in abilities with technology resulting in increased self-awareness and achievement of learning outcomes.

A Model for Easily Incorporating Team-Based Learning into Nursing Education

Heidi A. Mennenga — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:01:47 PST

A sense of urgency exists among nurse educators to determine the best possible teaching strategies to create a rich, engaging learning environment for students. With the calls for transformation, innovation, and excellence in nursing education from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, and the National League for Nursing, educators may determine that current teaching strategies fall short. Team-based learning, an innovative teaching strategy, offers educators a structured, student-centered learning environment and may be effective in teaching necessary skills to students. An overview of how this strategy fosters many of the essential concepts, such as critical thinking, professionalism, communication, and interprofessional teamwork, is presented. Additionally, this article offers a clearly delineated "recipe" for implementing team-based learning in the classroom. This innovative strategy has the potential to transform nursing education and provide a positive teaching and learning environment for both educators and students.

Exploring a Pedagogical Approach to Integrating Research, Practice and Teaching

Jennifer M. Newton — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:16:57 PST

Application of evidence is accepted as an important component of clinical practice. Teaching research to undergraduate students has been reported internationally as a challenge, particularly for nurse educators. In this paper, reported is a strategy designed to enhance research learning for undergraduate midwifery students at one university, which formed part of a larger, international investigation into women's responses to caesarean birth. Following theory classes and briefings, students worked with their clinical educators in practice to interview women using existing tools, and were engaged in qualitative data analysis. A number of challenges were encountered throughout the process, both for the educators and students. However, the teaching approach provided benefits for students in learning about midwifery research. Recommended as essential is for continued development of pedagogical approaches that make research tangible for students. Furthermore, provision of support for clinical staff working with students is important for success of such approaches.

Choosing a Career in Nursing: Development of a Career Search Instrument

Cristine A. Roberts — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 11:56:44 PST

University students in this millennium will be older, culturally diverse and likely to change their career major several times during the course of their education. Methods to identify and guide appropriate students toward nursing are lacking. The purpose of this study was to develop and initially test a 48-item Likert-scaled instrument, the Career Search Questionnaire (CSQ), which assesses interest in and self-efficacy for nursing. Data were obtained from 300 volunteer students, with implied consent, enrolled in beginning-level courses at a Midwestern university. Response differences were apparent between individuals who reported nursing as a college major compared to those who sought a different major. Participants who reported nursing as their major obtained higher scores in both interest (p = 0.00) and self-efficacy (p = 0.00). The CSQ is psychometrically sound, with a reliability score of 0.87 and capable of identifying the student for whom nursing may be the suitable career.

Teacher Perspectives and the Psychosocial Climate of the Classroom in a Traditional BSN Program

Melodie A. Rowbotham — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 05:21:51 PST

Developing and implementing a positive psychosocial environment should be one of the main responsibilities of educators. As educators influence the climate, learning is enhanced or hindered. Therefore educators need to understand their own teaching perspectives and how they in turn influence the classroom. Data were collected from nurse educators and BSN nursing students. The relationship between faculty teaching perspectives and the students' perceptions of the learning environment was examined. The data collection tool used to measure the educators' perspective was the Instructional Perspective Inventory (IPI), and to measure the students' perspective was the Adult Classroom Environment Scale (ACES). A MANCOVA was used to determine the relationship and significant differences between educators' and students' perspectives. The results indicated that the teachers in the high group of teacher responsiveness had students who reported greater teacher support, time on task, focus, organization, clarity of subject content, involvement, and satisfaction.

Effects of Nursing Education on the Image of Nursing as a Profession in Israel

Merav Ben Natan — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 10:23:43 PST

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of nursing students in Israel regarding nursing as a profession and nurses' public image, and whether there is a difference between the perceptions of first-year and more advanced nursing students. A questionnaire based on the work of Tzeng (2006) was administered to 200 first-year nursing students and 200 more advanced students. Most of the students felt the nursing profession needs to undergo an image change, while first-year students perceived nurses as more angelic and romantic than more advanced students. A positive correlation was found between satisfaction with nurses in the field and the image of nursing. In order to reinforce a positive image of nursing as a career, nurse educators should alter negative stereotypes about the profession.

Collaborative Essay Testing: Group Work That Counts

Peggy A. Gallagher — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:47:06 PST

Because much of a nurse's work is accomplished through working in groups, nursing students need an understanding of group process as well as opportunities to problem-solve in groups. Despite an emphasis on group activities as critical for classroom learning, there is a lack of evidence in the nursing literature that describes collaborative essay testing as a teaching strategy. In this class, nursing students worked together in small groups to answer examination questions before submitting a common set of answers. In a follow-up survey, students reported that collaborative testing was a positive experience (e.g., promoting critical thinking, confidence in knowledge, and teamwork). Faculty were excited by the lively dialog heard during the testing in what appeared to be an atmosphere of teamwork. Future efforts could include providing nursing students with direct instruction on group process and more opportunities to work and test collaboratively.

Employer Perceptions of Knowledge, Competency, and Professionalism of Baccalaureate Nursing Graduates from a Problem-Based Program

Bev Williams — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:58:15 PST

Employer evaluation of graduates is a critical component of professional program evaluation and contributes a viewpoint rarely reported in the literature. It has been proposed that Problem-Based Learning (PBL) enhances knowledge acquisition, clinical competency and professional behavior. Students assume the role of a registered nurse as they work through real practice scenarios on a daily basis in the classroom. The purpose of this study was to explore employer perceptions of graduates' knowledge, competency and professionalism, following completion of a PBL program. Nurse employers (N=53) participated in 10 focus group discussions. Four main themes were derived from employer descriptions of their experience with PBL graduates: still rough around the edges, we want them to succeed, a new generation of practitioner, and potential to lead the profession into the future. Please add what the implications of these findings are to nursing education.

The Competence of Student Nurse Teachers

Leena Kaarina Salminen — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 05:53:04 PST

The aim of this study was to evaluate how student nurse teachers meet the requirements of nurse teachers as they practice teaching in nurse education. The data was collected by the Evaluation of Requirements of Nurse Teachers (ERNT), as self-evaluations and peer evaluations answered by 40 student teachers over three years. The response rate was 82%. The total number of completed questionnaires received was 143. Data was analyzed by using descriptive statistics. The student teachers gained a high level of competence as teachers. The highest level of competence was reported in relationships with students, while the lowest level was associated with teaching skills. Of the single requirements, the weakest skills were related to teaching decision-making and encouraging students constantly to seek new knowledge. The nursing competence was mainly evaluated with high-level scores. Evaluations by the student teachers themselves and their peer students were in line.

Successful Transition of the New Graduate Nurse

Donna M. Romyn — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 08:51:28 PDT

Reports that new nurse graduates are not sufficiently prepared to enter the workforce are of concern to educators, employers, and other stakeholders. Often, this lack of 'practice readiness' is defined in relation to an inability to 'hit the ground running' and is attributed to a 'gap' between theory and practice and the nature of current work environments. To gain a deeper understanding of the process of making the transition from student to graduate nurse, discussion groups were held across Alberta with 14 new graduates and 133 staff nurses, employers, and educators. Five additional new graduates and 34 staff nurses, employers, and educators provided input by fax or e-mail. The findings of this initiative speak to the need to examine assumptions underlying 'practice readiness' and what constitutes an effective transition to the workplace. The problems to be addressed are complex and a wide range of sustainable, evidence-based approaches are required to resolve them.

Seeing With New Eyes: The Meaning of an Immersion Experience in Bangladesh for Undergraduate Senior Nursing Students

Hendrika J. Maltby — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:06:51 PDT

Nurses must provide culturally appropriate care. A powerful strategy to enhance cultural competency is immersion. This can increase awareness of personal beliefs, values, behaviors, and learning from clients. A three week immersion experience for 17 senior undergraduate nursing students was organized in partnership with the Independent University, Bangladesh. Working with interpreters, students learned about people and healthcare through interviews and site visits. The purpose of this qualitative study was to discover the meaning of the immersion experience for nursing students through their reflective journals. These were thematically analyzed and four themes emerged: Beginning to See, Thinking about the Seen, Wanting to Change the Seen, and Transformed by the Seen. These themes combine into a framework that has been tentatively titled, Seeing Through New Eyes and will be further developed on future trips. Achieving cultural competency is a complex, long-term process that can be intensified with immersion experiences.

Practice and Academic Nurse Educators: Finding Common Ground

Maura MacPhee — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 07:46:17 PDT

Two university-based schools of nursing and two healthcare regions, supported by a nurses' union, have formed an intersectoral collaboration to develop a practice educator curriculum. The curriculum is designed to increase educator capacity and practice-academic relationships. This article describes the preliminary groundwork among intersectoral partners. Practice and academic educators do not always recognize each others' expertise or share resources effectively. An online survey and focus groups were conducted to identify educators' similar successes and challenges, their perspectives of key criteria necessary to establish practice-academic collaborations and learning environments, and intent to leave. The findings revealed many similarities across sectors, although practice and academic educators had different foci or perspectives that will need to be bridged by the collaboration. Strategies are suggested to maximize educators' commonalities, provide better supports to minimize intent to leave, and ensure sustainability.

Students' Perception of Faculty Involvement in the Rural Hospital Preceptorship Experience

Monique Sedgwick — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 05:45:47 PDT

Faculty in Canadian undergraduate nursing programs have come to rely on preceptorship as the primary model for teaching and learning during the final clinical course. A focused ethnography was completed in order to examine undergraduate nursing students' experience of rural hospital preceptorship in western Canada. Data analysis revealed that students perceive nursing faculty involvement and support to be peripheral to the clinical experience. Strategies aimed at clarifying the faculty role and nursing programs' involvement are presented as a means to enhance the rural hospital learning experience.

Work-Related Stressors Experienced by Part-Time Clinical Affiliate Nursing Faculty in Baccalaureate Education

Kathleen S. Whalen — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 09:57:14 PDT

This descriptive and multivariate correlational study identifies work-related situations that were perceived as stressful in a sample of part-time clinical affiliate nursing faculty (n = 91) from a western state who teach in baccalaureate programs. The most stressful conditions include being physically and emotionally drained; working outside regular hours; dealing with the number of role expectations; and receiving inadequate monetary compensation. Subjects reported other specific stressful situations related to their work with clinical agencies, universities, and students. The researcher also examined the relationships between selected background factors (number of years of clinical teaching experience, clinical teacher education, and holding a second job), role stress, and job satisfaction. Even though this sample had a high job satisfaction rating, the variable, role stress, was shown to significantly predict job satisfaction. Lastly, implications for nurse educators in baccalaureate programs are explored.

Faculty Advising in Nursing Education: Necessary Evil or Opportunity for Excellence?

Connie Diaz Swearingen — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 14:07:44 PDT

Understanding the components of faculty workload is critical to recruitment and retention of nurse educators and to success and sustainability of nursing education programs. The role of faculty advisors has been linked to student retention and success in nursing undergraduate education. Despite the importance of academic advising, there is a paucity of research examining the impact of advising on the workload of nurse educators. When faculty roles, such as academic advising, are ostensibly valued by the institution and result in higher levels of student success, but are unrecognized and unrewarded as part of the workload formula, faculty stress and burnout can result. Recommendations for faculty advising are offered, based on current evidence regarding the importance of faculty advising and the impact of advising on the workload of nurse educators. Implications for redefining nursing faculty workload formulas are discussed.

Innovation in Community Clinical Placements: A Canadian Survey

Catherine Hoe Harwood — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 09:19:02 PDT

Ongoing restructuring within the health care system juxtaposed with mandated increased seats in nursing programs have taxed traditional clinical practice settings beyond their capacity. In the search for suitable clinical placements to meet learning objectives and fulfill required clinical hours, nursing program administrators are turning to various non-traditional settings. Yet limited research exists to describe the prevalence and types of 'innovative' clinical placements (ICPs) or the nature and quality of student learning in such settings. Described in this article are findings from a national survey of Canadian baccalaureate nursing programs completed by nurse educators and clinical placement coordinators regarding nursing student placements within ICPs. Participant survey responses provide a national snap-shot of ICPs, along with perspectives on pedagogy, strengths and weaknesses, capacity and sustainability issues, and ethical, legal and academic considerations associated with student placements in these settings.

Curriculum Reform in Baccalaureate Nursing Education: Review of the Literature

Maryann O. Forbes — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 08:10:42 PDT

The debate surrounding the need for reform in nursing education has been heard for well over a decade. Recently, deficiencies in the quality of patient care, as well as patient safety issues, have led to calls for change in health professions education by nursing organizations and the Institute of Medicine (IOM). The rationale and scope of any proposed curricular revision or changes in teaching practices must be firmly grounded in a comprehensive review of the literature and based on current research findings. This article synthesizes the recent literature related to curriculum reform and innovation in nursing education. Four themes were identified in the literature: incorporating safety and quality in nursing education, re-designing conceptual frameworks, strategies to address content laden curricula, and teaching using alternative pedagogies. Synthesis of the recent literature in the field will assist faculty who are beginning the curriculum evaluation and revision process in their own schools.

Structural Empowerment and Professional Nursing Practice Behaviors of Baccalaureate Nursing Students in Clinical Learning Environments

Kae R. Livsey — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 17:17:04 PDT

This study examines the associations between professional behaviors of baccalaureate nursing students and student perceptions of select factors within the clinical learning environment, including the role of clinical faculty leadership. Participants (n=243) were recruited from a randomly selected list of 1000 members of the National Student Nurses Association (NSNA) among sixteen states within the Southern region of the United States. Results revealed a direct relationship exists between student perceptions of structural empowerment in their clinical learning environment and professional nursing practice behaviors among students. Also found was that relationships between variables in the model are significantly strengthened by student perceptions of strong leadership behaviors of clinical faculty. Findings from this study may assist nurse educators by contributing knowledge relevant to support/facilitate the transition of individuals from student nurses to professional registered nurses and, thus enhance the impact of professional nurses' contributions in healthcare delivery.

Building Nurses' Capacity in Community Health Services

Nancy Edwards — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 16:21:13 PDT

This paper describes core processes, components, and insights gained from a research internship offered through the University of Ottawa, Canada. The growing demand for high quality nursing research requires the development and implementation of strategies for enhanced research capacity. A three-month intensive internship was developed as a main feature of a nursing chair held by the first author. The internship was deliberately structured around core processes of providing individual and group mentoring, creating opportunities for experiential education, and strengthening networks with researchers and decision-makers in health services and policy research. Building and sustaining individual research capacity was supported with strategies to address system challenges. If nurses are going to make their voices heard and increase their contributions to novel health service delivery approaches, building research capacity will be a core element. The internship may be a useful prototype for the development of initiatives to build research capacity in other settings.

Reaching the Top: Career Anchors and Professional Development in Nursing

Ruth Kaplan — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 15:23:26 PDT

This study, based on Shein's conceptual theory of career anchors, examined the relationship between career anchors, professional development and emerging career patterns for graduates of 12 consecutive two year second career programs in nursing (N=231) compared to graduates of concurrent four year academic programs (N=273). A 2-group comparison design was used and data collection tools included a demographic profile, a professional profile and a career anchor questionnaire. Statistically significant differences were found in regard to career anchors (p< 0.001) and career development (p< 0.001). Primary career anchors for the second career nurses were specialization and lifestyle where academic graduates chose management, autonomy and service. Academics displayed a statistically significant preference for administrative specialization (34%) compared to the second career tract (6.5%). Researchers propose that each group develops differently and contributes to the workplace and the importance of both certification and academic incentives to ensure recruitment.